Soeharto concerned over brawls

Soeharto concerned over brawls

JAKARTA (JP): Concerned about recent students brawls, President Soeharto has asked the national scouts to be more active in strengthening the morals and character of the country's younger generations.

His request was conveyed to the chief of the national scout association, Himawan Sutanto, yesterday.

The recent student unrest has claimed three lives. An 18-year- old technical high school student, Rachmat Hidayat, was killed in a brawl in East Jakarta last Friday. Another student, 13, Hery Heriansyah was killed by a group of teenagers in West Jakarta on the following day, while Raimon Sitepu was killed by a group of teenagers at his house in Menteng on Sunday.

Speaking after meeting with the President, Himawan said that Soeharto also asked the national scout head office to hold short courses on Islamic teachings.

Attending such a course would help youngsters improve their character, he said, adding that the movement had held similar study programs in the provinces during school holidays.

Himawan said that approaches would be made to Indonesia's Ulema Council to ensure that the Islamic courses were suitably structured. (sur)